Pacing guide
5km · 3.1 miles · Every second of pacing counts at this intensity.
Choose your goal time below to get a personalized pace plan and printable wristband.
Build a custom plan →Sub 20 Minute 5K
Sub 20 minutes for 5K (4:00/km) is a genuine landmark — fewer than 10% of parkrunners ever break it. At this pace you'll be running near your VO2 max for the entire race. Pacing discipline in the first km is everything.
Sub 25 Minute 5K
Sub 25 minutes (5:00/km) is a great benchmark for runners who've been training consistently for a few months. It requires sustained effort but is absolutely achievable — the key is not burning out in the first kilometre.
Sub 30 Minute 5K
Sub 30 minutes is a milestone that many new runners target — and it's very achievable with a few months of consistent training. At 6:00/km the pace is sustainable but still requires effort and smart pacing.
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Enter a custom goal time →5K pacing is all about the first kilometre. Go out too fast and you'll suffer from km 2 onwards. A 5K pace plan gives you a precise split for each kilometre so you can race by clock and finish strong rather than hanging on.
A good recreational 5K pace is between 5:00/km (25 min) and 7:00/km (35 min). Sub-20 minutes (4:00/km) is a benchmark for competitive club runners. For parkrun beginners, any finish under 35 minutes is a great start.
Run your first km 5–10 seconds per km slower than goal pace, hold even splits through km 2–4, then give everything in the final kilometre. Most runners who achieve a PB do so with a slightly faster last km.
No — in fact pacing errors hurt more at 5K than any other distance because there's no time to recover. Running km 1 just 15 seconds per km too fast can cost you 30+ seconds by km 4.